He expended a private fortune exceeding £20,000 in bringing his patent processes to complete perfection. When that was achieved, and the leading ironmasters of the kingdom had, as related, signed contracts to pay him 10 shillings per ton for their use, his patents were seized by a high Officer of the Crown, holding the responsible and lucrative posts of Treasurer of the Navy and Secretary at War, and under an extent obtained by the perjury of a confidential deputy his freeholds at Fontley, Fareham and Gosport, valued, with the stock and goodwill of a lucrative trade, at £39,000, were handed over to the son of a public defaulter in that Treasurer's office. No account of these proceedings against Cort was ever obtained either before his death in 1800 or afterwards.

From petition to Parliament, quoted in Times accolade of 1856.

The ironmasters' contracts were wishful thinking by Henry Cort's son Richard. Only Folliot Scott at Rotherhithe and Richard Crawshay at Cyfarthfa made any wrought iron under agreements with Cort. There may have been a few agreements with other ironmasters, but all indications are that they never actually puddled any iron while Cort was in business.

The allegation of perjury by Alexander Trotter is likewise a figment of Richard Cort's imagination.

The freeholds, stock and goodwill were not handed over to Samuel Jellicoe. He paid for them, after Cort had specifically relinquished his rights.

The proceedings against Cort were recorded. The records were presented as evidence to the Commission of Naval Enquiry in 1804.

Mr. Cort on 17th May 1790 wrote to Mr Trotter offering his personal services to procure such necessary information to render the patents productive but not receiving any Answer Mr. Cort of course cd not proceed to procure such information…

From a note, apparently by Henry Cort, of July 1791; quoted in Henry Cort: The Great Finer

I had many conversations with Mr. Cort upon the subject, and Lord Melville's son, Mr. Dundas, took a great deal of trouble after Mr. Jellicoe's death in endeavouring to make Mr. Cort's patent of value, so as to be brought in liquidation of Mr. Jellicoe's debt.

Evidence of Alexander Trotter to Select Committee, May 1805.

Sir, The Commissioners of the Navy have received your letter of the 4th instant, and I have it in charge from them to acquaint you that your invention appears of that utility as to induce them to give encouragement to the manufacture of British iron, performed according the methods that have been practised by you.

From letter of Navy Board Secretary John Morrison, supposedly July 1791, quoted by Webster and again in Henry Cort: The Great Finer: "a typical example of official evasion".

From a Recollection of the great Kindness and condescending Attention which you so repeatedly manifested towards my late father Mr Henry Cort, I am induced to hope you will pardon the Liberty I take of addressing you by Letter…

From letter of Coningsby Cort to Robert Dundas (Melville's son and secretary during 1790s), 23 March 1808, in Scottish National Archives.

Upon the representation of Mr. H Dundas (Lord Melville), the Treasury by warrant granted him a similar pension of £200 which he enjoyed until his death in 1800.

From Weale collection, Vol 3 leaf 205

It appears that the Treasurer and his confidential deputy a few weeks before the sitting of the commission indemnified each other by a joint release, and agreed to burn their accounts for something approaching to a million and a half of the public money which had passed through their hands. In this general conflagration all the evidence by which Henry Cort's case could have been established perished, and the culprits refused to answer any questions which would have criminated themselves.

From Times accolade of 1856.

It is probable, indeed, that from his royalties, and receipts under his patents, Cort or his representatives could have satisfied all claims. Time, however, was denied him, and the simpler plan adopted of ruining him and his descendants outright, and at once. The influence of the culprits and the exigencies of political life forbade all hope of raising the question in Parliament at any subsequent period.

From Times accolade of 1856.

There is little doubt that the part taken by Mr. Trotter in the proceedings against Cort was prompted by fraudulent motives, and were connected with that series of transactions for which Lord Melville was impeached by the House of Commons in 1805. Had time and opportunity been afforded to him, Cort could easily have made up Jellicoe's deficiency, as he was engaged in lucrative contracts for the navy, and his engagements with the ironmasters, then on the eve of completion, would have provided him with ample funds to meet the liability. But no, - Cort had been marked out as the victim of deception on every side. Not only were his patents taken possession of by the Admiralty, but also his contracts with the Welsh ironmasters, who, basely taking advantage of the difficulties which the unfortunate patentee had been thus placed in, faithlessly broke the engagements they were under for the payment of license dues, and never paid Cort a shilling out of the thousands which were justly due to him.

From Alverstoke Parish Magazine, June 1864.

He was deliberately and perseveredly hindered from reaping any other reward but loss from his labours by the acts of official authority…

From letter of David Mushet jnr published in Journal of the Society of Arts, 24 August 1855.

The sight of this man, master of the situation, reaping royalties that were running into the hundreds of thousands of pounds, was too much for poor, weak human nature. Quietly and undreamed of by him, the lines were drawn about him until every vestige of reward was wrested from him.

From unpublished monograph by Charles H. Morgan

Related pages

Cort's patents

Henry Dundas and Alexander Trotter

History of Adam Jellicoe

Adam Jellicoe's death

Samuel Jellicoe after 1789

Generosity of friends 1789-94

Cort's twilight years, 1789-1800

Parliamentary inquiry, 1811-2

The Times accolade, 1856

Furore of the 1850s

Eighteenth-century politics

Eighteenth-century finance

Puddling after Henry Cort

Publications about Cort

Main sources of information

Fact, error and conjecture

Life of Henry Cort